Self-oiling bearing



H. J. SMITH.

SELF OILING BEARING. APPLICATION man AUGJQ, 19m.

Patented Nov. 15, 1921. 2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

SELF OILING BEARING. APPLICATION FILED AUG.I9. 1913.

1,397; 15,, PatentedNov. 15,1921.

2 SHEETSr-SKEET 2.

UNITED STATES HARRY 3'. SMITH, OF LAKEWOOD, OHIO.

SELF-OILING BEARING.

specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 15, 1921.

v Application filed August 19, 1918. Serial No. 250,414."

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HARRY J. S M rTH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lakewood, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented new and useful Improvements in Self-Oiling Bearlngs, of

which the following isa specification.

This invention relates to that class of selfoiling bearings in which the oil is picked up by an oil ring or collar secured to the shaft and'delivered from the top of this ring to the journal for the shaft after which the oil is again returned to a well or reservoir from which the same is again picked up by the ring and thus kept constantly in circulation.

It is the purpose of this in'ventionto provide a bearing of'this character which is superior in construction and more efficient in operation than those heretofore in use and which is more particularly designed for use in an installation where the bearing is turned circumferentially out of its normal position and must therefore be so organized that spilling or overflowing of the oil will not;occur, although this bearing is also appli'cable for other uses.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1 is a vertical"longitudinal section of'a self oiling bearing embodying my invention in its more approved form. Fig. 2 is avertical transverse section taken on line 2-2, Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is' a horizontal sectiontaken on line 33, 'Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a vertical transverse section taken on the correspond: ingly-numbered line in Fig'. 1. Fig; 5 is a fragmentary longitudinal section showing a modification of the means for closing the supply opening of the oil well. I

Similar characters of. reference indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views. M v

The hollow'body of this self-oiling bearing is constructed integrally and preferably of cast metal and comprises two end portions 1, 1, whichare of tubular or circular form, shaft opening's'2f2, arranged axially in the opposite end walls of the body for receiving. the shaft 3 which is to be journaled and an oil supply opening 1 formed in the top of the body midway between its opposite ends, adapted to form a passage through which oil is introduced into thebodylas well as some of the movable parts of the bearing arranged within the body." Theopposite end portions of the body are reduced or of comparatively small diameter While the central part thereof midway of its length is enlarged circumferentially, as shown at 5, thereby forming an oil well or reservoir 6 within the body which is comparatively deep at thecenter or midway between the opposite ends of the body while the end portions of this well are comparatively shallow. The deep central part of the well forms a settling chamber for catching dirtin the oil.

Arranged axially within opposite end portions of the body are two supporting sleeves 7, 7, which are connected with the wall of the body by means of laterally-projecting brackets or webs 8, these sleeves, brackets and body being preferably formed integrally of cast iron. supporting sleeves is a bushing of good wearing material such as bronze or brass which forms the bearing surfaces iniwhich the shaft 3 turns. The supporting sleeves and their brackets and the bearing bushings supported thereby are separated on their opposing inner sides by anintervening space and in this space and over the deep part of thewell, is arranged an oil ring or collar 9 which is secured to the adjacent part of the shaft so as to turn therewith, this being accomplished for instance by means of a set screw 10 arranged on the oil ring and engaging with the periphery of the shaft, as shown in 1. During the rotation of the shaft, the oil-ring dips its peripheral parts successively into the oil within the oil well on, th e underside of the shaft and carries the same upwardly over the top thereof. When the oil reaches the top of the oil ring, the same is removed therefrom and conduct ed to the bearing surfaces between the shaft and the bearing bushings in which the same turns, the surplus again returning to theoil Well to be again circulated. My improved means for removing the oil from this ring or collar and delivering the same to the bear- 111g bushings are preferably constructed as follows: i

' 11. 11 represent two annular contact or bearing surfaces arranged on the periphery of the oil ring and preferably beveled or tapered from the central parteof this ring toward opposite flat sides thereof. 12, 12

Arranged within each ofithese represent two conducting members which while their outer extremities are arranged adjacent to the bearing surfaces in which the shaft turns. In the preferred construction of these conductor members they are made of brass tubing and are so arranged that they incline in opposite directions from the oil ring, each of these tubes resting with its elevated inner end loosely on the beveled face on one-half of the periphery-of the oil ring, while the lower outer end of this tube fits loosely in an opening or socket 13 formed in the upper parts of the companion bearing bushing, supporting sleeve and supporting webs, as best shown in Fig. 1.

As the oil-ring rotates in contact with or close to the conducting members or tubes, the latter operate as scrapers which remove the oil from the periphery of the oil ring and then conduct the same to the upper part of the cooperating surfaces between the shaft and the bushings, so as to lubricate them. During this movement of the oil from the oil-ring to the bearing surfaces, the same passes not only through the interior of these tubes but also along the exterior thereof by reason of the looseness of the fit of these tubes in the sockets 13, thereby furnishing an ample path for the oil to reach the journal for properly lubricating the same and also avoiding the possibility of clogging these ducts. Furthermore, by loosely mounting these conducting members or tubes within the sockets, it is possible for the oiling collar to play sidewise to a limited extent in response to any end motion that may develop in the shaft and still maintain the lubricating efiiciency of this bearmg.

Within the enlarged central part of the body, the same is provided with a plurality of inwardly-projecting retaining lugs or ribs 14' which are preferably formed integrally with the body and which operate to hold the oil-ring substantially in its central position with reference to the body, so as to facilitate the application of this ring to the shaft when mounting the latter in the bearing. When this bearing is in operation, the oil supply opening in the top thereof is closed by a lid or cover 15 which is secured to the top of the body over this opening, a packing or gasket 16 being preferably employed between this cover and the body so as to form an oiletight joint therebetween. Vari ous means may be employed for securing this cover to the body, but those which are shown in the drawings are designed to cooperate with a holder in which the bearing is mounted. This holder may be varied in its construction to suit the particular purpose for which this bearing is intended to be used. In the form shown in the drawings, this holder is of the pedestal type which is of circular form and embraces the central part of the bearing body and comprises two semi-circular sections 17, 18, bolts 19, 19, each of which connects a pair of.

coupling lugs 20, 21 on the corresponding ends of these holder sections and a base 22 which is formed on one of these holder sections and is adapted to be mounted upon the part designed to carry the bearing. On its inner side or bore, this holder has a facing 23 of babbitt or similar material which is turned or bored to forman inner or concave spherical surface or socket 24. On its exterior the enlarged central part of the bearing body is provided with an outer or convex spherical seat or surface 25 which is adapted to engage with the bottom and side portions of the concave spherical seat of 'the' holder. The means for holding the cover over the oil supply opening in the body are preferably designed to cooperate with that part of the spherical socket of the bearing holder atthe top thereof where the same is not engaged by the central enlargement of the body. In the form of this clamping device shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 4, the same comprises a clamping lever 26 arranged on the outerside of'the' cover lengthwise of the bearing and pivoted at one end thereto by means of a transverse "pin 27, a jack screw 28 mounted in the opposite end of this lever and bearing-against the outer side of the adjacent part of the cover,-and an abutment 29-preferably of rounded or spherical form arranged on the central part of this lever and engaging with the upper part of the spherical socket of the bearing holder. This lever is preferably made of cast iron orsimilar material while the abutment-is preferably constructed in the form of a rivet of hard and durable material. Before'applying the cover to the body, the screw 28 is slackened so asto permit the abutment to be passed under the concave bearing face of theholder while the cover is in engagement with the body, after which this screw is tightened so as to cause the cover to be pressedagainst the body over the oil supply opening and the abutment to be pressed against the adjacent part of the spherical surface of the holder. This manner of mounting the bearing in the holder forms in effect a ball-and-socket joint between the same which permits the bearing'to adapt itself to the holder while maintaining its alinement with the shaft.

If desired, the cover may be-held in place by the means which are shown in Fig. 5, in which case a clamping screw 30 is provided which engages its inner threaded end with a threaded opening in-the cover 31 while the outer side of its head is provided with a convex spherical abutting surface 32 which engageswiththe concave spherical seat of the holder.

Aside from its superior construction and more efficient lubricating capacity, this hearing is also very tight and permits of turning the bearing circumferentially in either direction out of its normal central position Without liability of spilling any oil and still maintaining its lubricating capacity, an actual test of this bearing having demonstrated that it is possible to tip the same at least ninety degrees in either direction from the normal position, or in other words altogether approximately 180 degrees', without interfering with its maximum lubricating efliciency. If desired, the holder may be omitted and the bearing body secured in place and the cover held thereon by any suitable means.

I claim as my invention:

1. A self oiling bearing comprising a tubular outer body, an inner tubular bearing formed integrally with said body, an oil ring mounted in said body, and an oil conducting member engaging said ring and extending to said bearing.

2. A self-oiling bearing comprising a hollow body, having an internal bearing surface in which a shaft is adapted to turn, an oiling ring mounted on said shaft adjacent to said surface and provided with an annular beveled face on its periphery, and an oil conducting tube having one end engaging said beveled face and its opposite end arranged adjacent to said surface, said body being provided internally with a perforated bracket which receives said tube.

3. A self-oiling bearing comprising a hollow body provided internally with two bushings which are spaced apart and adapted to receive a shaft which turns therein, an oil ring mounted on said shaft between said bushings, and two oil conducting tubes which incline in opposite directions from the space between said bushings and have their opposing ends engaging with the periphery of said oil ring and their opposite extremities arranged adjacent to said bushlngs.

A. A self-oiling bearing comprising a hollow body having reduced tubular ends of comparatively small diameter and an enlarged annular central part forming an oil Well, bushings arranged in the end portions of the body and separated from each other by an intervening space and receiving a shaft, an oil ring mounted on said shaft between said bushings, and ring retaining lugs arranged in said well and adjacent to said bushings.

HARRY J. SMITH. 

